On the contrary, don’t let yourself be stampeded into buying something that definitely does not appeal, just because you are a little tired of looking but are bound to live in the country anyway.  Real estate dealers and would-be helpful friends may have rallied around and, after showing you a score or more parcels of land, begin hinting that you are hard to please.  Possibly, but just remember that your money purchases the place and that you, not they, will have to live there.  Two people once spent years looking for a place within easy commuting distance of Philadelphia.  Friends and brokers became exhausted and fell by the way.  Word was passed around among the latter that these people were “just lookers and there was no use bothering with them.”  One day a broker, hoping to be rid of them, showed a piece of property so unsightly and generally run down that he thought no one could possibly want it.  To his amazement, they liked it, saw its possibilities and, after proper investigation, bought for cash with never a quibble over the price.  They showed rare intelligence in restoring both house and grounds and are living contentedly there today.

Most of us, though, who really want a country home are of no mind to spend years looking for one.  It may be that the lease on the city apartment is due to expire in a few months and one must decide whether it is to be renewed or not.  There may be children in the family who are in urgent need of the fresh air and outdoor life of the country.  Under such circumstances, it is often a real advantage to rent a place for a year with option to buy.  One learns both the good and bad qualities of a house in that time at probably no greater cost than continued rental for a city establishment.  Further, if you decide to buy it at the end of the year, the rental paid may apply on the purchase price.

You can thus have plenty of time to look over other property in the vicinity.  Perhaps it may be impossible to find a house that really pleases, but you do discover an ideal site.  It may be a fine old orchard.  It may be a tree-shaded spot with an old cellar marking the place where a house once stood.  It may be an undeveloped hillside.  In such an event, you have the advantage of either building a house to your liking, or finding an old one and moving it there.

Be very sceptical about “bargains” in your search.  Relatively few people underestimate the value of their possessions.  Perhaps they are really willing to sell at a sacrifice “because father can’t stand the cold winters any more” or “because we like to feel the place is in good hands.”  But it would seem more reasonable that father’s declining years in Florida or California would be sweetened in direct ratio to the amount realized on his property.  So look well for the real reason.  The house may be unduly expensive to maintain.  It may be so badly built that bigger and better repairs become a constant drain on the family purse.  There may be something so wrong with the adjoining property that one must either buy that, too, or give up any idea of living on the spot with any comfort or pleasure.